A man in a motorized wheelchair was struck and killed in a hit-and-run crash this morning.

The crash occurred around 9:30 a.m. near 11th and Charlotte Streets. Authorities say the victim, identified as 50-year-old Phillip Noel, was crossing the street within the marked crosswalk when the vehicle struck him and sped away.

Noel was taken to a local hospital in critical condition, but died a short time later.

Authorities say the vehicle involved is a white Saturn Aura with temporary tags and front-end damage.

“A fatal pedestrian crash is never easy to deal with, but this is particularly tragic,” remarked Eric Rogers, BikeWalkKC’s executive director. “Our condolences are with Mr. Noel and his family. We sincerely hope that the perpetrator is apprehended and brought to justice.”

“I think what makes this such a terrible incident is that Mr. Noel was doing what he was supposed to do,” said BikeWalkKC policy director Eric Bunch. “As a city, we’re clearly not doing enough if a person in a wheelchair can’t even cross the street, in the crosswalk, without having to worry about being struck and killed.”

As BikeWalkKC has stated in the past, what deserves the majority of the blame for these crashes is the culture that values car traffic efficiency over the safety of human lives.

For more information, contact Karen Campbell, director of development and communications, at (816) 205-7056 (ext. 2) or by email at karen.campbell@bikewalkkc.org.

If you have any information about the crash, please call 911 or the TIPS hotline at (816) 474-8477.

BikeWalkKC believes that crashes are not accidents and clothing is not an excuse.